HUNTINGTON, WV(WOUB) -
West Virginia's second largest city is looking for a new police chief.

Huntington Police Chief Gene Baumgardner is retiring in May.

The 66-year-old Baumgardner was appointed to the post by Mayor David Felinton in 2002, in the wake of massive police officer layoffs.

Baumgardner replaced Gordon Ramey the Second, who was fired after he said the department would not be able to efficiently operate under the cuts. At the time, Felinton said he had lost confidence in Ramey's ability to run the department.

The city has begun a national search for a new chief. An ad in "The Police Chief," a monthly publication by the International Association of Chiefs of Police, lists the salary range as between 51-thousand-603 and 57-thousand-479 dollars. There is a requirement that the chief live in Huntington.

The ad said Huntington's police department comprises of 87 sworn officers and six civilian employees and has a budget of $9.6 million.